A personal blog about quilting, sewing and life as a mother. Lots of free tutorials including beginning quilting tutorials, binding tutorials, and other sewing projects like bags, quilt blocks and nursing covers.

Goodwill Toward Men

A little bit of a longer, more sentimental post today, but I think we’re all feeling a little more sentimental for various reasons these days. I don’t often wax philosophical, because frankly, it’s a lot harder to write something deep. It’s way easier to say, “Look at this pretty fabric…” and distract you that way. But I’ve had these thoughts for a while and felt like it was time to put them down on cyber “paper.” So bear with me on this one. And if it’s not your thing, I totally understand and I’ll be back next time with another crafty-quilty project.

I have to admit that about a month ago I was having a hard time getting excited for Christmas. Not an Ebeneezer-Scrooge-bah-humbug kind of disdain, but in more of a Charlie-Brown-sick-of-the-commercialism kind of way. I was walking through Target a few days before Thanksgiving and I just felt yuck. Too much hype about black friday deals or just buying stuff. It made me dread the Christmas season instead of being excited for it. Especially when I thought about my kids. They have enough stuff and I knew that stuff wasn’t going to make any of us any happier in the long run.

Cookies not from Martha Stewart Living

So I vowed that we would not have Christmas be about “what comes from a store” but make Christmas be about “a little bit more”. We needed to make Christmas about other people – specifically, loving our neighbor.

I’d had an experience a couple of months ago that taught me a profound lesson. I was going through a patch where I felt misjudged and misunderstood by some individuals and it totally made me grumpy, if not angry. One Monday morning I had just dropped my kids off at school and was thinking of the huge ‘to-do’ list I needed to tackle that day when I noticed my single, elderly neighbor across the street trying to rake her leaves. I looked at her and thought, “she needs help” but rationalized about how much I had to get done that day.

And then my conscience worked on me some more and I set my list aside and went out to help bag leaves. By the time I got there – much later than I should have – another friend was already there helping. We got the leaves raked and bagged relatively quickly. It was a gorgeous fall morning and I thoroughly enjoyed that time visiting with my neighbors. My older neighbor was so happy and grateful we had offered to help. But I guarantee you, I was the one who benefited the most that morning. By far. When I came back home, it no longer mattered what other people thought and my frustration and burden were gone. I felt happy and back to myself again.

So I knew that helping my kids have experiences doing something for other people would make Christmas much more special for them than a new Lego set or an Itunes gift card. (Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for presents at Christmas time, I just don’t want it to only be about presents.)

As part of the motivation we started a Warm Fuzzy Jar (see top). This is by no means a new idea – I’ve heard it lots of places, but I share it in case it’s new to someone. I bought some fuzzy pompom balls from the craft supplies aisle and when someone does something good – even if it’s totally simple like saying Hi to an extra person at school or not calling their brother annoying – they get to put a ‘warm fuzzy’ into the jar. There are much cuter variations on this theme, like Calli’s felt heart ornaments, but if all you have time for is the fluorescent puffballs for 1.97 at Walmart, that’s good enough.

We also call this “giving presents to baby Jesus.” Because he is the Birthday boy after all. And since Jesus doesn’t really need a new bike, what he really wants is for people to love and help each other, those are the best presents we can give. Acts of love and kindness.

And then the events in Newton happened last week. Talk about putting life and what’s important in perspective. I’ll be honest, I can hardly even skim the news reports about that horrible event because it makes me so incredibly emotional. Even sitting here typing is making me tear up. It hits extra close to home because I have a 6-year-old in the first grade. I can’t even fathom the grief those parents and that community must be experiencing. Just going to my own children’s school this week for their Christmas program, I kept getting weepy seeing those precious, innocent children and thinking about not only those whose lives were cut far too short, but those who will bear emotional scars for the rest of their lives.

“You are the beast teacher ever.”

And it’s especially sad to have happened right before Christmas. But ironically, it also puts Christmas in perspective. If Christmas is about sales and shopping and stuff then it sure feels pretty hollow right about now. But if Christmas, or Hanukkah, or any meaningful holiday, is about family, and kindness, and loving our neighbor, and “peace on earth, goodwill toward men” then it is definitely richer and more significant than ever.

Thank you again my friends for visiting this blog. Whether you celebrate Christmas or other special traditions, I send you love and well wishes for a happy holiday season with those you love most.

And with that, I will share with you a video that has been my own version of Linus this Christmas season:

Amy, you put into words everything that has been going through my head and heart. I have a 6-year-old first-grade granddaughter and I can&#39;t even think about losing her. Thanks for sharing your thoughts in such a meaningful and well-written way. Merry Christmas to you and your family.

I have struggled for the longest time, trying to place what is in my heart, into the written word. You communicated so much of how I have been feeling, so eloquently. Thank you Amy. My feelings run so deep this year, and yet I have posted mainly quilty, sewing, sorts of posts. I just can&#39;t seem to match my heart to words at this time, as much as I wish I could. I so seldom cry, but this

Amy–Thanks so much for writing this. You are such a wonderful, sincere person. I don&#39;t know how anyone could do anything but adore you. I admire you so much and want to be like you when I grow up. Have a wonderful day.

Thanks so much for sharing this!! The video brought tears to my eyes–beautiful!! I am always inspired by your blog, but have never written a reply to thank you for sharing of yourself — Thank you! I hope to make (well at least start) my own thankful quilt this year…has been so meaningful to think of the words I will write on it, a kind of legacy to leave my family. Have a blessed

I love the &quot;giving presents to baby Jesus&quot;! That makes perfect sense to me and just hits me in a good way. My 4 little kids have been so grumpy this week and I keep thinking about whether the mamas in Newtown had good mornings with their babies or if they sent their kids off to school with the stop-fighting-with-your-siblings kind of morning. I think we will have a big talk tonight

Thank you so much for posting this, Amy — I have been feeling EXACTLY the same way this year. I couldn&#39;t even get motivated to decorate, and was dreading the neverending LEGO wish lists, the shopping, the stressing about money and gifts and will-they-like-its and did-I-spend-enoughs and did-I-spend-too-muches. And although my kids are a little older than yours (4th and 6th grade), my

What a beautiful post, Amy! I&#39;m terribly prone to getting bogged down in my &quot;To Do&quot; list. You&#39;ve inspired me to set it aside for a bit and make a pillowcase or two. I hope you and your family have the merriest of Christmases and the happiest of New Years!

Thank you so much for your post. I was in the Christmas spirit this year until Sandy Hook. It hit me really hard. I have a kindergartener and all I could think about was what it would be like for that to have been her class. I can&#39;t imagine the heartache those families are having to bear. I hope the spirit touches them and gives them peace and that we can all hold our families a little closer

We had our Christmas concert last night and it was wonderful! All those little faces singing from their hearts! My son and fellow school mates had the opportunity to do something for the Angels of Newtown.<br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5YNS6FlUDc&amp;feature=player_embedded<br />I think it&#39;s just going to be a very weepy, thankful, Merry little Christmas this year

Hello, you are nominated by Midwest Mary for the One Lovely Blog Award. You can see your nomination here: http://midwestmary.com. If you wish to accept this nomination the rules are to: 1. Thank the blogger who offered the nomination; 2. Post the One Lovely Blog emblem on your blog; 3. List seven random facts about yourself; 4. Nominate fifteen other bloggers for the award. Send a message to

Merry Christmas Amy. You&#39;re right, it is much easier to write about our creative outlet then to delve into our feelings and hope to convey our deepest sympathies and intentions. But thanks for doing the hard thing today. It resonates with me.

Preach on, sister! I&#39;ve been trying to involve my 5-year old granddaughter with all the charitable things we do at Christmas time, like bringing food in for needy families, taking a child&#39;s name off the Angel Tree and purchasing gifts for her, and buying &quot;birthday presents for Jesus&quot; that will be distributed at our local elementary school – hats, mittens, gloves, school

oh Amy, what a beautiful post, thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and words. The tragedy in Connecticut makes me cry. Those poor, sweet children and their teachers. And the life-long pain for their families. It definitely puts things into perspective, as we gather our families in close at Christmas time. I am going to start a warm-fuzzy jar – I hadn&#39;t heard about that idea

Wat a perfect post. That about sums up how I am feeling exactly. Made a few pillowcases today to send off, and felt great for it. I have a quilt that needs finishing for Christmas, but you know what? I can wrap it up half done and finish it later, the recipients will still love me and I NEEDED to make some pillowcases today. Your warm fuzzy jar is a wonderful idea, may borrow that! And I

Hi Amy, thank you especially for reminding us who the &quot;birthday boy&quot; is. The world goes so crazy after that which does not even lasts till next Christmas, that we must remember that which lasts for ever. Merry Christmas and much love to your whole family

Thank you so much for this, it was a really heartfelt post, and I too have a HUGE to-do-list today, but I know I need to just think about what is really important, and everything else can just wait. The video brought tears to my eyes, a combination of the images and amazing music. As a Christian I try to make Christmas about Christ, but sometimes things get a bit mixed along the way, and your

A really beautiful post Amy and one that I truly appreciate. I too felt the same way before Thanksgiving and although the season hasn&#39;t turned out quite like I had hoped thanks to a sick kiddo, it hasn&#39;t been too bad so far. Having both kids&#39; birthdays right before Christmas doesn&#39;t help with the To Do list at all. My son&#39;s class uses a warm &amp; fuzzy jar and I think for the

So beautifully written. Thank you for sharing your heart, I needed to read that today. I recently came across something that has made a difference for me and the way I try to live my life. Just google &quot;the birthday project&quot; – it is all about random acts of kindness, which we can do any day, not just on our birthdays. Important lessons to learn, as well as teach, especially if we have

What an honest heart felt post. I too have a first grader and get emotional every time I hear the news stories. It definitely put things in perspective for me since that very morning I was rather frustrated with her because she was dawdling and I was trying to get to work-not one of my finer moments. Since then, I&#39;ve made sure to hug each of my children before they leave and let them know

I have been feeling the same way…and this is our first official Christmas with the GBs…I just put a tree up last night…<br />I had totally lost the focus of the season with all that has been going on.<br />Thank you for restoring my holiday/birthday spirit…<br />Merry Christmas…and to all a good night.

I love the idea of the warm fuzzy jar :o) I really do hate the commercialism of Christmas, of hearing my colleagues discussing the obscene amounts they&#39;re spending on their other halves and kids, the parties, the drinking til you drop (actually that might be a British thing), the music shop down the road from my office literally blasting music so loudly from speakers outside their store that

Merry Christmas to you and your family Amy. <br />When our kids were elementary school age, they made mangers out of Popsicle sticks and every time they did a good deed during Advent they would put a little straw in the manger so Jesus would have a comfy bed on Christmas morning-thank you for the gift of the &#39;memory jog&#39;! <br />

Last year I felt so Christmasee. Not this year. <br />I could not put my finger on it until I read your blog. Yes it was Walmart saying that they will be open Thanksgiving. All of the store SALE, SALE, SALE&#39;s. Finish it off with our representatives in DC continually fighting, just so the other guy gets nothing.<br />Remember when only the 7-11 was open on a holiday, and Sunday. <br />We are

I know that feeling of thinking of your child when you think of the tragedy that occurred last week… except that our child is all grown up and teaches 6 and 7 year olds. I think of her, knowing that if she was placed in the same situation, she would do whatever she could to protect the children in her care and I try not to worry. So many, many things have occurred in the past year, both

I enjoyed your post about what makes Christmas real…..I try to have Christmas spirit every year but I am not always successful. As a grandma with a 4 year old granddaughter I can only think how each child&#39;s murder in Newtown echos out in each family to the grandparents…….my life would be unbearable without my little granddaughter. I can only pray for these families who have lost a

Your warm fuzzy jar is absolutely wonderful! I am not a mother but I am a teacher and an aunt to a wonderful little boy so the events of that day are horrific beyond words. I don&#39;t think you can call yourself human and be unaffected by it. I agree that it has put Christmas into perspective and reminded me of the really important things.<br /><br />I&#39;m wishing you a very Merry Christmas

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